Fallon's Fighting In Chicago Soon!

In case you're wondering what the heck our MMA fighting sister is up to, she's been busy training for an upcoming fight in Chicago.

The 'Queen of Swords' is busy getting back in shape and honing her skills for an upcoming March 21 bout in the Windy City against 1-0 Heather Bassett 

The bout will be part of XFO 50, set to take place Friday, March 21, at the UIC Pavilion at 525 S. Racine Ave.for thosee of you in the Chicago metro area who want to attend the fight.  It's being billed as the "Biggest Night in XFO History" and the action starts at 6 PM CST.

And Fallon is excited to be a part of it. 

"I am so incredibly excited [to get] back in the cage, especially since this will be XFO MMA's 10th anniversary show," Fox said in a Windy City Times interview. "There's going to be lots of great fights on this card, including many of my teammates from the Chicagoland area fighting also, or cheering me on."

"This time I'll have the luxury of having my hometown fans and teammates behind me," said Fox, who added that she wants a strong LGBT fan base at the fight. "XFO MMA is an LGBT-friendly organization. I've been to many of their fights and always come away from them pleased, so this should be a good event for everyone who shows [up]."

If you live in the area, please consider doing exactly that.  

T.G.I.F. 2013 Happening Tomorrow

Last July  T.G.I.F., spearheaded by local trans activist KOKUMO brought over 350 people to a first of its kind event in Chicago celebrating the trans, gender variant and intersex communities that featured a rally, musical performances, a picnic and a community expo. 

The second annual Trans*, Gender Non-Conforming, Intersex Freedom (T.G.I.F.) event happens tomorrow July 28 at Union Park from 12-4 PM CDT at 1501 W. Randolph St.   If you're living in the Chicago area and are looking for something to do on a Sunday afternoon that supports the local community, you may wish to show up for this one. 

The theme for this year's T.G.I.F. is "Transcending Pride, Evolving Movements," is hosted by Cyon Flare and will have performances by Angelica Ross, Dirty Grid, About Face Youth Theatre, Elias Karal, Jova Black, KOKUMO and more.  Local activists delivering keynote addresses are Alexis Martinez of the Chicago Dyke March Collective, gender nonconforming performance artist Nic Kay and intersex activist Pidgeon Pagonis.

There will also be organizations at T.G.I.F. 2013 with information booths and tables performing services such as SAGE Community Services, the Young Women's Empowerment Project and the Transformative Justice Law Project.

Should be a fun, interesting and informative event, so if you're in the Chicago area, go support it.

KOKUMO Performing This Weekend

TransGriot Note:  Photo of KOKUMO by Andy Karol

For you peeps in the Chicago area looking for something to do, y'all get the opportunity to check out a KOKUMO performance this weekend. 

Hot on the stiletto heels of the release of her debut EP, the 'artivist' KOKUMO will have her debut performance at Parlour On Clark.  KOKUMO LIVE is a benefit for T.G.I.F., the second annual Trans Intersex Gender Non-Conforming Freedom Rally and Picnic. 

The $3 donation at the door will go towards defraying the costs associated with putting together the T.G.I.F. event.   The address of the venue is 6341 N. Clark St, Chicago IL, 60660

Also performing will be Mister Junior, Kiam Marcelo Junio and the Northern Lights Go-Go Gothic Dancers.
Your host for this night of entertainment for a good cause will be Andy Siharath with DJ Erik Roldan on the wheels of steel

The performance starts at 11:00 PM CDT at Parlour on Clark, so here's an opportunity for you to see my fellow Trans 100 list sis, get a night of entertainment at a reasonable cost and support a good cause at the same time. 
 

Three Girls Like Us-One Year Later

35 year old Coko Williams of Detroit was one of three African-American transwomen killed during the month of April 2012 along with Paige Clay in Chicago and Brandy Martell of Oakland.

Coko's brutal April 3 slaying and subsequent disrespecting by a local media outlet set off a bloody month for African-American girls like us. 

On April 16 we got the word that 21 year old Paige Clay was found shot to death in an Chicago west side alley.  

The month closed with 37 year old Brandy Martell being shot April 29 while sitting behind the wheel of her car at 13th and Franklin Streets in downtown Oakland.

I wish I could write in this post the wastes of DNA who committed these crimes against our transsisters have been arrested, are awaiting trial or are rotting in jail for doing so.  But unfortunately, at this time I haven't been able to confirm there have been arrests in any of the three cases.

If you have information about Coko's killing, you can contact Detroit police at (313) 596-2260 or Crime Stoppers at www.1800speakup.org or by texting CSM and your tips to CRIMES (274637).

If you have information concerning the Martell case please contact the Oakland Police Department at 510-777-3333


In the meantime life has moved on.   Our tears have dried, these women have been laid to rest and all the people whose lives they touched on one level or another.have or are still grieving their loss with candelight vigils marking the one year anniversary of them being taken away from us. 

What irritates many of us in addition to them being taken away from us far too soon is what we lost.   Paige was just beginning her life at age 21, Coko and Brandy were ages 35 and 37.  All were contributing their skills and talents in their own ways toward making their Chicago, Detroit and Oakland communities better.

The other common thread in their lives besides being girls like us and dying in the same month was they were all loved by the people whose lives they touched
 
The people who killed them may be walking around free right now thinking they got away with it, but on one level or another they will face justice, be it from the legal system or the karmic kind.    

But one thing is certain.  Coko, Paige and Brandy we will never forget.   

We Have a History, Too

Another one from the TransGriot The Newspaper Column archives that i peened in February 2005 for Black History Month.

We Have a History, Too
Copyright 2005, The Letter


Ever since I was a child I've loved history. I enjoy looking at past events to get an understanding of how the reality of the present took shape. It is then that you can formulate plans to make a better future.

The transgender community is starting to come to grips with this truth and a website called Transhistory.org has tried to do that. However, it misses the boat in terms of the stories of the African-American trans community.

I'll start with Cathay Williams. She was born into slavery in Independence, MO and worked for a wealthy planter until his death, which occurred about the time the Civil War broke out. After Union soldiers freed her she began working as a paid servant. She traveled with Union Army until the war was over. She liked military life and wanting to be financially independent, in November 1866 enlisted as William Cathay. Because a medical exam wasn't required at the time, she was able to join Company A of the 38th United States Infantry. The 38th Infantry later became known as the Buffalo Soldiers, the all-Black cavalry and infantry units that saw action in the Indian wars, the Spanish-American War, and World War I.

Only her cousin and a friend knew Cathay's true gender. On October 1, 1867 she arrived at Fort Cummings, NM with Company A and spent the next few months protecting miners and wagon trains from Apache attacks. Eventually Cathay became ill, and once the post doctor discovered that she was a woman she was discharged on October 14, 1868.

That's just one of the interesting stories involving an African-American transgendered person. If you saw the 1990 documentary `Paris Is Burning' you were introduced to the Harlem drag balls. Those balls date back to the Harlem Renaissance.

It was the period from the end of World War I to the middle of the Great Depression in which a talented group of Harlem based writers produced sizable volumes of poetry, fiction, drama, and essays. Several of those writers were gay, such as Countee Cullen, Wallace Thurman, Langston Hughes and Richard Nugent.

The drag balls were eagerly anticipated by both White and Black New Yorkers. The largest ball was held in the Rockland Palace, a venue that held up to 6000 people. Smaller balls were held in the Savoy Ballroom and at other locations around Harlem.

Chicago also has a ball tradition. In 1935 a gay man by the name of Alfred Finnie held his first ball in the basement of a bar on the corner of Michigan Avenue and 38th Street. Finnie was killed during a gambling brawl in 1943, but the ball continued for several decades. It grew to be a highly anticipated glamour event attended by thousands of people on Chicago's South Side.

Annie Lee Grant's story is an intriguing one. According to the book 'Black Love Black Resistance', in order to get higher paying men's jobs he passed for 20 years as Jim McHarris. After working as a short order cook, cab driver, gas station attendant, preacher and shipyard worker, his secret was discovered when he was stopped for a traffic violation in 1954.

I can't end this column without briefly discussing Lexingtonian James `Sweet Evening Breeze' Herndon, who I'll talk about in next month's column. Miss Sweets was born in Scott County in 1899. She spent 40 years working as an orderly at Lexington's Good Samaritan Hospital and was regarded so highly she trained the new ones. . Miss Sweets blazed a colorful trail through the Depression, World War II and beyond until her death on December 16, 1983.

Since it's Black History Month I thought this would be an excellent time to share some of my history with you. Hope you enjoyed it.

Another Young Chicago Transwoman Killed

Sad news to report before I depart for Charlotte, and thanks to reader Jessica Wicks for bringing it to my attention.

19 year old Tiffany Gooden was found stabbed to death on Tuesday in an abandoned building in the 4800 block of West Jackson Street on Chicago's West Side.    This comes less than four months after Paige Clay was found shot dead in an alley less than three blocks from that location. 

My reaction to the news that another young transsister's life was snuffed out?   I'm pissed, and the transphobic idiots running rampant in the comment threads of the CBS2 news story isn't helping my mood. 

I also didn't appreciate the writer sticking in the story courtesy of some random street interview the 'Black transwomen are prostitutes' meme

Chicago Police according to the story are investigating both the Clay case and the Gooden one.   They'd better be, because if they aren't, I'm going to find out about it courtesy of local activists.  I will be keeping an eye on this latest murder as well with the help of the Chicago rainbow community until the wastes of DNA who committed it are brought to justice.

But add Tiffany Gooden's name to the sadly lengthening list of people we will be memorializing when the 2012 edition of the Transgender Day of Remembrance takes place in November.

Trans Pride Event In Chicago Next Week

TGIF (Trans, Gender Non-Conforming Intersex Freedom) , the first ever trans pride event in the Midwest according to its founders will take place on July 29 at Union Park in Chicago. 

It was put together by KOKUMOMEDIA in collaboration with other local Windy City organizations such as the Dyke March, Affinity, Southwest Youth Collaborative, the Center on Halsted, the Broadway Youth Center, About Face Youth Theater, and YEPP with financial support from the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, Berlin Nightclub, Queerer Park, the University of Chicago, and Lambda Legal.

TGIF will feature music, performances, speak outs, poetry, skits, beauty parlors and more in addition to a keynote speech from Kylar Broadus, the executive director of TPOCC, the Trans Persons Of Color Coalition.

KOKUMOMEDIA is the entrepreneurial company founded by KOKUMO, a 23 year old African descended transwoman whose 'artivism' includes a one act play I talked about on the blog last April called 'The Faggot Who Could Fly'.   She was recently honored with a 2012 Esteem Award.in the Outstanding Service Youth category. and her name translates to literally mean 'this one will not die'

She wants to create the world she didn't grow up in and has noticed like all non-white trans people do the progress disparity between us and our white trans counterparts.
“[Transgender, gender non-conforming, and intersex] people are definitely making strides, but when it comes to black and brown TGI people, we’ve got a long way to go,” said KOKUMO. 

For those of you TransGriot readers in the Chicago area, you may wish to observe history in the making by checking out and supporting the first annual TGIF event and give my TPOCC brother some love.

Paige Clay Rally Tonight

For those of you in the Chicago area, there will be a 'Justice For Paige' rally tonight hosted by the Taskforce for Prevention and Community Services. 

The rally will be held from 6:30-9 PM CDT at their offices located at 9 N. Cicero Ave.

The wake and funeral for Paige Clay if you wish to attend it will be held at Acklin Funeral Home, 1325 W. 87th St. in Chicago on Friday, May 4.   The wake will run from 3-4 PM CDT with Funeral services commencing shortly after from 4-5 PM CDT

Chilling With My H-Town Chicago Cousins

Yesterday was my cousin Karen's birthday (Happy birthday cuz!), and my uncle, grandmother and I made the crosstown trek to Alief to hang out with them and attend her surprise birthday party.

One of the cool things about my cousin in my not so humble opinion is that in addition to being one smart lady time has been very good to her.  

Many of her friends, her husband and a few more of my Chitown relatives also moved down here in the early 80's.  They either settled in the Alief area,.other parts of H-town or the nearby Fort Bend County exurbs.   

So when they have events like this party, it feels like the South Side made its way down to the Lone Star State.   Since I didn't have to play designated driver, I was going to not only socialize but take the opportunity to within reason get my grub and drink on.

It was wonderful finding out that my cousin Ivory flew down from Chicago to surprise her mom. I got to see her and spend some time chatting with her before she heads back to college later today. 

We also had a bunch of Tauruses in my aunt's house yesterday, too
.
The other cool thing about having a bunch of Chicago folks in a room is once they sort out who is from the North Side, West Side or South Side and finish extolling the virtues of (or ragging on) that person's side of town and the party gets going, somebody is going to either pull out a deck of cards and the obligatory bid whist game will break out or some song will get played that triggers an outbreak of Chicago Stepping..

So as you probably guessed I had a wonderful time, got to spend some quality time with my cousins, and looking forward to the next time I can do so.

.

The Silent 'T'

I posted the trailer videos a few day ago from the I Am The Queen documentary by Josue Pellot and Henrique Cirne-Lima.   This was the initial trailer video of some interviews that were done but didn't make it into the final film but according to the filmmakers were instrumental in getting the project jump started.    

'I Am The Queen' Documentary

I Am The Queen is a documentary produced by Josue Pellot and Henriique Cirne-Lima that focuses on a group of Latina trans women in the Humboldt Park neighborhood of Chicago and a 2010 trans pageant organized and sponsored by VIDA/Sida.   




Trailer 2

2010-11 Miss Continental Winner Is....

Last year Mokha Montrese finished as the first runner up to 2009-10 queen Armani, who finally achieved her personal goal of seizing the crown at the 30th annual Miss Continental Pageantin Chicago.

What a difference a year makes at the recently conducted 31st annual edition of the Miss Continental Pageant.

Outgoing queen Armani spent Labor Day 2010 at the Park West Theater passing the Miss Continental crown to her successor, Mokha Montrese, the person she beat to gain the previous year's title. She is the Miss Continental pageant queen for 2010-11.

Mokha Montrese's story is a mirror image of Armani's Miss Continental history in terns of finally getting to wear the crown she's relentlessly pursued after all these years. She's another longtime Miss Continental contestant who has come agonizingly close in various years to winning the title.



The Miss Continental pageant is contested every Labor Day weekend in Chitown, so if you're interested in attending the 2011-12 version, better be ready to shell out the dough when the tickets go on sale because they don't last long.

Bu congrats to Mokha, and may you enjoy your reign you've worked long and hard to achieve.

2010-11 Miss Continental Pageant This Weekend

It's Labor Day weekend, and one tradition that has happened in Chicago since 1980 is the Miss Continental Pageant.

It's the nationally respected and premier trans pageant for professional female illusionists and takes place at Chicago's Park West Theater.

Last year's winner Armani Stevens will be passing on her crown to her successor, and the road to the 200-11 crown will start with the preliminaries on Sunday, September 5.

The preliminary field will be whittled down to the 12 ladies who will compete for the crown on Labor Day evening.

One former Miss Continental who went on to mainstream success is 2001 winner Candis Cayne. She later became the first transwoman to appear in a recurring prime time role as a transwoman when she joined the cast of the short lived ABC series Dirty Sexy Money as Carmelita Ranier.

If you're in the Chicago area and are interested in checking out the event, you can check and see if they still have reserved tickets for sale by calling 312-527-9338.

The Host City For The 2016 Olympic Games Is...

Rio de Janeiro!

They're probably still depressed in Daley Plaza, Rush Street, Grant Park, the Navy Pier and elsewhere in Chicagoland after today's IOC meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark awarded the Games of the XXXI Olympiad to Rio de Janiero.

Chicago shockingly was knocked out in the first round of voting despite the best efforts of the FLOTUS, POTUS and Oprah along with many other peeps in the US delegation.

Some Chicagoans have compared the feeling to their emotions after the Cubs were knocked out of the NLCS by the Florida Marlins a few years ago.

Gee thanks Republican party, Fox News and all the Olympic haters. Your mismanagement of this country for the last eight years and stirring up anti-American sentiment, your over the top racist hatred of President Obama and sniping may have possibly cost Chicago and this country the Games.

Hope you're happy.

But one of the things Jacques Rogge stated when he became IOC president in 2001 is that he wanted to have an Olympic Games on the South American and African continents before his term ended.

While I'm disappointed the Olympics won't be returning to the United States and staged in Chicago, the silver lining is that an Olympics will be held on the South American continent for the first time.

The dates for the Rio Games will be August 5-August 21, with the Paralympic Games taking place September 7-September 18.

When the London Games have their closing ceremony, it will be the mayor of Rio accepting the Olympic flag from his London counterpart in 2012.

I feel the pain of Chicago and all the hard work of an army of dedicated people who put their hearts and souls into landing the Games for this city and our country.

So when the final leg of the Olympic torch relay happens, it will be traveling through the streets of Rio in 2016. Wonder who will be the person lighting the cauldron in Rio's Olympic Stadium?

But it does open the door for Houston to try again to land the Olympics in 2020.

And there's one serious party going on right now in Rio de Janeiro.

President Obama and Oprah Winfrey Are Headed To Copenhagen

The International Olympic Committee meeting to determine who gets the 2016 Summer Olympics will be held on Friday and the Chicago 2016 delegation is hard at work trying to land the bid.

According to Olympic bid watchers it has devolved to a competition between Rio de Janeiro and Chicago, and it's anybody's guess which way the 106 members of the IOC will vote. The only thing anyone can say with certainty is that it will take multiple ballots and it will be close.

With rumors flying a high IOC official stated Chicago won't get the bid unless the prez appears in Copenhagen despite comments from IOC President Jacques Rogge to the contrary, President Obama decided to make the trip.

Chicago 2016 officials were pleased to announce that President Obama would be joining First Lady Michelle Obama, White House senior adviser and former Chicago 2016 vice president Valerie Jarrett, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, and Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood in Copenhagen Friday to help push the Chicago bid to a hopefully successful conclusion.

Chicago 2016 Chair Patrick Ryan stated, "There is no greater expression of the support our bid enjoys, from the highest levels of government and throughout our country, than to have President Obama join us in Copenhagen for the pinnacle moment in our bid. We are honored that President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will be with us to extend a hand of friendship on behalf of our nation and the city of Chicago as we seek to welcome the world for the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games".

Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley said, "President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama symbolize the hope, opportunity and inspiration that makes Chicago great, and we are honored to have two of our city's most accomplished residents leading our delegation in Copenhagen. Who better to share with members of the International Olympic Committee the commitment and enthusiasm Chicago has for the Olympic and Paralympic Movement than the President and First Lady".

Oprah Winfrey has also announced she would be heading to Copenhagen as well to help push the Chicago Olympic bid, and the leadership is happy to have her along as well.

Valerie Jarrett, who was the vice chair of Chicago 2016 prior to becoming a senior adviser in the Obama administration stated, "Oprah will have a full schedule from the time she hits the ground as well. I think that she is an international icon, widely respected throughout the world and her presence, and her willingness to put her reputation behind Chicago, a city she both calls home and loves and knows so well, I think will have a very significant impact on the IOC."

We'll find out how much of an impact they all had on the IOC on Friday

Chicago 2016 Olympic Bid May Get More High Powered Help

With Chicago being in a tight race to secure the 2016 Olympic Games and the October 2 decision date looming, the Chicago 2016 committee may be about to get more help from the big guns in its arsenal- Oprah Winfrey and the POTUS.

There are also rumors that Chicago 2016 is trying to get Hall of Famer and Olympian Michael Jordan to make the trip as well. No word from His Airness yet as to whether he will do so, although he does support the bid.

“I’ve had some tremendous memories in my professional basketball career,” Jordan said. “But the memory of standing as a representative at the Olympics representing the United States is one of the proudest moments of my life. To step up on that podium representing your country—there’s no greater honor than that.”

As for Oprah, she stated in a recent interview from Toronto that she is open to the idea of going to Copenhagen to help Chicago sell its bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics.

There's some talk about it, and if I feel I can be useful there, then that's what I will do." Oprah said to the Chicago Tribune.

First Lady Michelle Obama and White House adviser Valerie Jarrett are heading to Copenhagen with the Chicago 2016 delegation for that October 2 meeting.

On that date each of the Final Four cities will get a final chance to impress IOC members and make their Olympic case after months of preparation and visits by IOC officials.

Each candidate city will have 45 minutes to present, followed by 15 minutes of questions. First up will be Chicago thanks to the results of a random drawing conducted before this meeting.

To secure the Olympic bid, a candidate city must garner a 51% majority of the secret ballots cast. IOC President Jacques Rogge has said this year's vote is too close to call, and the winner could be decided by a few votes.

Olympic bid watchers are predicting a tight race between Chicago and Rio. It's adding to the pressure for President Obama to help his adopted hometown cross the finish line and secure the Olympic Summer Games for a US city for the first time since Atlanta hosted the 1996 Games.

There are rumors the Prez is creating room on his domestic calendar to hake that trip and be available for the vote.

Even if he doesn't make the trip to Copenhagen, the White House says the president has been actively engaged in helping Chicago. He has not only reached out to IOC President Jacques Rogge, but sent letters to all IOC voting members, taped four video messages supporting Chicago's bid and made targeted phone calls to key IOC members.

That outreach will continue and probably intensify as the October 2 meeting date approaches.

During the Olympics rally recently held at the White House, the president stated a winning bid would not only be a success for Chicago, but the whole country.

"Chicago will make America proud," he said. "And America will make the world proud."

Burr Oak Hits Home

When the news about the horrific happenings at Chicago's historic Burr Oak Cemetery broke a few weeks ago I had this unsettling deja vu moment.

As some of you long time TransGriot readers may know, my roomie Dawn and I both have relatives in the Chicago area. I used to early in my airline days frequently visit them during the early 90's, sometimes with my then best friend and co-worker Eric Shepherd along for the ride to hit some of the house music venues.

I knew that Burr Oak was one of the cemeteries where many prominent Black Chicagoans have been laid to rest. It is also the resting place of Emmitt Till, whose 1954 lynching was the emotional spark that jump started the African American civil rights movement.

When I watched the news coverage of the unfolding events I had a 'where have I heard that name before' alert going off in my head. The reason I was having the bad moment became clear when I called home last Friday and talked to my mother.

My first trip to Chicago was back in August 1986. It was my first airplane ride as we took an Eastern Airlines Moonlight Special flight from Houston Intercontinental to Chicago O'Hare to attend the funeral of my Uncle Leon.

My uncle had passed away on August 2, and the date sticks in my mind because it was the same day as the fatal Delta air crash at DFW.

My mom has a summa cum laude degree in history and is basically our family historian.

She keeps the records of all family events such as our reunions, weddings and funerals and was having the same unsettling feeling I had upon hearing the name Burr Oak earlier this month. Mom decided to pull out and reread my Uncle Leon's program.

When I talked to her, Mom dropped the bomb for me that Uncle Leon was buried in Burr Oak.

I was already concerned, pissed and mortified about the horrific crap that had happened there and greed being the motivating factor for it. It was initially reported that First Lady Michelle Obama's father Fraser Robinson III was buried there as well, but the White House later released a statement that he wasn't.

Unfortunately, there are families like mine all over the country and the Chicago area who do have loved ones buried there. I'm still awaiting word from my Chicago relatives to find out if my Uncle Leon's grave or headstone was disturbed.

Emmitt Till's grave was one of the 300 graves disturbed. After all the pain that the Till family has suffered, to have those painful wounds reopened again in such a disgusting way makes me sick to my stomach.

As Jesse Senior said, there's a special place in Hades for the people who perpetrated this evil. When these wastes of DNA are brought to justice for it, may the Cook County court system and the state Of Illinois throw the book at them so they can spend the rest of their miserable lives rotting in jail.